Definitely a "cultural" thing - which extends to the Honda and Toyota Dealers, and Sony Stores here in the USA... all good experiences.
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Wal-Mart to Sell iPhone Starting Sunday
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Definitely a "cultural" thing - which extends to the Honda and Toyota Dealers, and Sony Stores here in the USA... all good experiences.
Elitist snob? Not true. It simply comes down to what you value. You obviously value the almighty dollar above anything else. Some of us value other thing more.
For me, the cost isn't worth the savings. Yes you save a few dollars on your food bill, but you spend a heck of a lot of time standing in lines, fighting for parking, browsing huge isles, getting questionable service and generally being frustrated and surrounded by other frustrated people. No thanks!
As for "REAL" financial responsibility, what does that have to do with shopping at Wal-Mart? If you managed to dig yourself into a hole where saving $1 on a pack of toilet paper becomes a life or death situation maybe it is time to re-evaluate your financial plans.
Back on topic: This is a double edged sword for Apple. Huge distribution channel, but Wal-mart is famous for going back to the manufactures and demanding that they reduce their sale price so that it can be rolled back without costing Wal-mart any money on their end. I think Apple is pretty safe in this case though as most of the revenue is actually tied up in the service charges and they have a product in enough demand that they can just say "No".
Not to start another fight like I did in the last Wal-Mart iPhone thread but....
Looks like I'm not the only one who thinks the average Wal-Mart shopper might not be able to afford the monthly iPhone bill.
Looks like I'm not the only one who thinks the average Wal-Mart shopper might not be able to afford the monthly iPhone bill.
As far as I'm concerned, it's a disadvantage. Sure, you save all two dollars (whoopdee do!) on an amazing phone, but Wal-Mart is making a profit on this. Why would you want to support such a greedy retailer? And you're right; it does kill (brutally murders, for that matter) the exclusivity of owning an iPhone...which is why i'll be clinging onto my first generation 16GB iPhone for a LOOONNNNGGG time.
Who believed anything MSNBC has to say? Obviously those sites are just opinion and obviously wrong,
I went to wal-mart this morning to look for a case for my 3G iPhone and they had no cases.
Bullsh*tter alert!
Read: If you buy the Wal-Mart BRAND "Great Value", you get crap. If you move down two spaces on the shelf and buy Kellogg's or Post, you get the tasty stuff. Wal-Mart sells hundreds of quality name-brand items alongside the sh***y private-label stuff...as does every other major retailer/grocer. I mean, if it's really that big of a deal to you, check the barcode next time you're in a Wal-Mart. If the UPC code begins with 78742, it's a Wal-Mart brand. You're better off sticking with the UPCs that begin with 85909. 
Too bad none of ya'll have ever stepped into a Neighborhood Market, they have those all over Vegas and they RAWK. Easily shorter lines than Vons/safeway/albertsons/smiths/food4less, comparable pricing and here's the REAL kicker:
BETTER SERVICE - I never thought I'd say that about a walmart (rarely have I been in a super center where I didn't have to wait behind 4-5 people in line).
That said, I was at a super center today getting my T-Mobile phones swapped out with 3G models, they had them free (no rebates) vs T-Mobile wanting $100 - 50 rebate.. can't complain!
The assistant was apologizing for "holding me up so long" (15 minutes in all?) because, and you'll never guess this:
The demand for the iPhone at walmart is more than they had anticipated, so much more that it was overloading their system.
Whodathunkit? I sure as hell didn't expect a lame duck phone to be overloading a store's sales system XD
While we were getting that ironed out, I'd say a half dozen people came by intending to buy one, soo there.
Maybe people are getting sick of Apple's business practices (crowded stores that are hard to breathe in and lousy genius bar service).
BETTER SERVICE - I never thought I'd say that about a walmart (rarely have I been in a super center where I didn't have to wait behind 4-5 people in line).
That said, I was at a super center today getting my T-Mobile phones swapped out with 3G models, they had them free (no rebates) vs T-Mobile wanting $100 - 50 rebate.. can't complain!
The assistant was apologizing for "holding me up so long" (15 minutes in all?) because, and you'll never guess this:
The demand for the iPhone at walmart is more than they had anticipated, so much more that it was overloading their system.
Whodathunkit? I sure as hell didn't expect a lame duck phone to be overloading a store's sales system XD
While we were getting that ironed out, I'd say a half dozen people came by intending to buy one, soo there.
Maybe people are getting sick of Apple's business practices (crowded stores that are hard to breathe in and lousy genius bar service).
I thought they only had a limited stock to begin with? Wasn't it like 5 phones per store or some rediculous number?
How is it an exclusive prestigious thing to own an iPhone? Its not a $250,000 Ferrari. It only costs less than $200 and any kid making minimum wage at McDonalds could easily buy one. Could anyone making minimum wage go out and buy a Ferrari? Even a Xbox 360 costs more than an iPhone. My iPhone plan is around $75 a month which isnt crazy either. I wouldnt even call an apple computer an elite product unless you call items that start at $599 elite. Do you think someone who uses an iPhone is richer than someone who doesnt? Almost every kid I know has an iPhone now. iPhone isnt even close to being the most expensive phone out there either.
People are saying Walmart employees are uneducated highschool dropouts so what do you think the regular apple salespeople are? You think they have PhD's or something to be a cashier? I know several people who used to work in an Apple store and those same people also worked at places like Wal-Mart and Target.
Apple products are not 100% made in the USA. I dont see how Wal-Mart is any different from Apple. They are both greedy corporations who only care about making money off of people and both get products from China. Apple isnt a non-profit company that gives all its money to charity.
Obviously Apple and AT&T can get more phones out there by selling the iPhone at Wal-Mart just like Apple has done with the iPod.
People are saying Walmart employees are uneducated highschool dropouts so what do you think the regular apple salespeople are? You think they have PhD's or something to be a cashier? I know several people who used to work in an Apple store and those same people also worked at places like Wal-Mart and Target.
Apple products are not 100% made in the USA. I dont see how Wal-Mart is any different from Apple. They are both greedy corporations who only care about making money off of people and both get products from China. Apple isnt a non-profit company that gives all its money to charity.
Obviously Apple and AT&T can get more phones out there by selling the iPhone at Wal-Mart just like Apple has done with the iPod.
I try to buy everything cheap such as close-outs, used, and refurbs, and on my income, $75/month for cellular service is crazy...
I'm on T-Mobile right now with 1000 minutes, free nights/weekends, 400 texts, and unlimited EDGE data for $51/month, and I cringed at that (I used to have voice only at $39/month, but everyone texts nowadays and the iPhone is a lot more useful with a data plan).
Good for Wal-Mart, sounds like they just want the prestige of selling the iPhone. Whether or not anyone buys from them, that's a whole other story.
Maybe just a lead-in to the iPhone Nano? But I speculate that it will be just a smaller, 4 Gig, $99 phone with the same expensive AT&T plan (hope I'm wrong on that).
So open one. If there's really such a strong demand, it should be very profitable. Except that there probably isn't; people say they like mom and pop stores, just like they say there's too much violence on TV. But when you look at what they actually do, they go for wide selection and low prices and explosions.
Yeah, loyalty cards are obnoxious. Give them bogus data or swap them around.
"Elitist" may not be the best word, but many people seem to think that their preferences are universally correct, and anyone who chooses to pay less for products of possibly lower quality is objectively wrong. Like the $1 toilet paper quip; if you're in a poor family trying to make ends meet, saving $10 per weekly shopping trip can make a big difference.
I have T-Mobile for the exact same reason!
2 phones, 700 minutes = $70 a month. I'm actually planning to add our home phone to the service as well ($10 a month vs the $30 I currently pay vonage).. The added bonus? It counts as a T-Mobile line so it falls under unlimited mobile to mobile XD
With the vast majority of my minutes available, I'd be out of my mind to waste my time with "txt msg plox", and why would I?! I can't stand that form of WAPanese.
When I get the chance, I may blow $400 on an iPhone + the ETF from AT&T, we'll have to see.
Thanks for a civil, reasoned response. There have been way too many of the other kind...
As far as needing to save a buck here and there, I think there's a difference between thinking tactically and thinking strategically. Saving $10 a week is tactical thinking-- how do I make it to my next paycheck. That's important, but answering that question alone dooms you to ask it again next week. Asking how communities get to a place where that $10 is so important to so many people, and how we might get out of that situation is strategic thinking. While it isn't possible to survive thinking only strategically, it is possible to survive thinking only tactically, though sub-optimally. What we need is a mix of thought, as individuals and as a society, about what strategic decisions we're going to make. Strategic thinking isn't something that only the "elites" are capable of, and the tactical choice that advances your strategy doesn't have to come at a greater cost-- in many cases it can be the less costly short term answer as well as the better long term answer.
While there's an argument to be made that some people are too worried about today to think about tomorrow, I don't think it's a strong argument. The reason this whole argument is relevant to this thread is that it is typically the more affluent who have the luxury to not only make small strategic decisions, but also to use their wealth to effect change. They can choose tactics of higher cost. They can afford the extra $2 on the cost of their iPhone. The people who need to worry about saving $10 on their weekly bill aren't buying iPhones.
Does that make it equally elitist to be arguing as objective truths that Walmart is inevitable, or unions are evil? I don't see elitist attached to those arguments.
As far as needing to save a buck here and there, I think there's a difference between thinking tactically and thinking strategically. Saving $10 a week is tactical thinking-- how do I make it to my next paycheck. That's important, but answering that question alone dooms you to ask it again next week. Asking how communities get to a place where that $10 is so important to so many people, and how we might get out of that situation is strategic thinking. While it isn't possible to survive thinking only strategically, it is possible to survive thinking only tactically, though sub-optimally. What we need is a mix of thought, as individuals and as a society, about what strategic decisions we're going to make. Strategic thinking isn't something that only the "elites" are capable of, and the tactical choice that advances your strategy doesn't have to come at a greater cost-- in many cases it can be the less costly short term answer as well as the better long term answer.
While there's an argument to be made that some people are too worried about today to think about tomorrow, I don't think it's a strong argument. The reason this whole argument is relevant to this thread is that it is typically the more affluent who have the luxury to not only make small strategic decisions, but also to use their wealth to effect change. They can choose tactics of higher cost. They can afford the extra $2 on the cost of their iPhone. The people who need to worry about saving $10 on their weekly bill aren't buying iPhones.
I happen to live in an area where the supermarket closed and the two mom and pop groceries survived. Which is a good thing, because I frankly don't have the talents to run a grocery. Part of speaking out about one's opinions is to make it clear to others that there is a market there-- I can't be the one to open every alternative business, but by adding my voice to the chorus saying they'd like an alternative to Walmart, someone else can.
This is true - at least the 3G iPhone was a little cheaper. I remember seeing 15 and 16 year old kids walking around with the original iPhone during the first few weeks it was launched. That means they had a $500-600 phone in their hands (at that time), which I thought was crazy because how many times do you see teenage girls pull out their pink Motorola Razor that has little sparkle gems up and down the whole outside of it yet has a broken screen, hinge, key, plate etc. because they drop it every time they pull it out of their pocket! I thought it was funny actually, because you almost knew what was coming--kinda like when the Wii came out and people were shattering tv screens by not using the hand strap!
Nevertheless, I would get all self-righteous at 27 and say "what do these kids need an iPhone for" and tell you that I use mine as a business tool and rarely for entertainment/music/games...I would tell you that as I played Word Warp a good 2 hours yesterday, but when I was 15 and 16 years old I used money from an after school job and signed up for my first cell phone with Sprint PCS...and I didn't get the free piece of garbage they were offering from Audiovox or Kyocera or Qualcomm, I bought the Motorola StarTAC -- which was the "elite phone" of it's day. And did I need a cell phone? No way. If I did my parents would have gotten me one. Instead, they let me take theirs if I went out at night and it was for emergencies (75 minutes for probably about $59.99 - thanks BellSouth Mobility!)
None of us "need" an iPhone. We can live without our iPhones. We can do business without our iPhones. We can even be, dare I say it, productive without our iPhones. So I guess I have no right to say to some kid: "why the heck do you have an iPhone--you don't need it". That motivation would be solely out of jealousy which never does anyone any good. If I had a teenager right now he/she definitely wouldn't have one though...though my 2 year old daughter loves to see Daddy play Fieldrunners.
Sounds like alot of people are haters of wal-mart selling the iphone. My wife works at a wal-mart, and I think it is awesome, since she can get a 10%($30) discount on the 16gb iPhone, and a 15% discount on the service plan.
So whats the deal? Can you pay cash for the iPhone in Walmart?
Do you have to activate in-store?
Do you have to activate in-store?
That quip would be mine.
I apologize for the poor choice of words. In all fairness, you are taking that way out of context. It was never meant to belittle poorer families. It was meant to point out the absurdity of claiming that all it takes to be fiscally responsible is to shop at Wal-Mart, all while being able to justify buying a $198 phone with a $65 monthly contract.
What it comes down to is, shop at Wal-Mart, don't shop at Wal-Mart. Just try to be aware of the results of your actions.
- You save on the monthly grocery bill (or $2 on an iPhone)
- You are supporting Wal-Marts questionable labour practices & employee treatment
- Wal-Mart refusing to pay higher prices to suppliers helps keep inflation down
- You are supporting Wal-Marts unethical treatment and bullying of suppliers.
- The constant push for lower prices leads to suppliers changing the way they do things. Some are good, some bad. (Good = reduced waste, Bad = cutting employees wages, reducing quality or outsourcing to meet Wal-Marts demands)
- Brings more products to smaller towns
- Leads to the death of mom & pop shops and the loss of choice in smaller towns.
- Leads to the loss of identity of small towns.
- Shopping in the suburbs encourages urban sprawl and the death of downtowns in big cities.
- Placement of stores in the outskirts of cities means more reliance on cars to get there, higher infrastructure costs for cities(more taxes for everybody), less availability of bussing, more traffic in the suburbs.
- For small communities and big cities, every dollar profit the store makes gets shipped back to the Waltons, instead of staying in the local community .
- You are ultimately giving more power to the most powerful company in the world instead of helping the little guy.
I live in the capital of Mom & Pop stores (just a little west of Boston) and I can't stand them. The mom'n'pop places never have what I want, the miniscule selection they do have is very limited and the prices are insane. There's nothing romantic about limited variety. Fortunately there are a few Walmart/CVS/Walgreens within reasonable driving distance so I can get the stuff I want. I bought a big jug of laundry detergent at Walmart in Hudson, MA yesterday. It was $11. The same jug in West Concord is $19 and in Acton it is $17.
If you're single, renting an apartment and have few living expenses it's easy to justify the additional cost of visiting your local corner grocery store but there's a lot of people out there who have a family that need to save money. It's immature to belittle Walmart.
There are more people who are apt to see an Apple product in a Wal-Mart than to see an Apple product in an Apple store (count the number of Apple stores and compare that to the number of Walmart stores). It is a good thing that Apple decided to make their products available to people who didn't even know Apple stores exist.
A fool and his money are soon parted.
People have made strategic decisions to create change - there are more Walmart stores as a result of their purchasing choices
You also drove 20 miles and spent half and hour or so of your time to get there. Not everything is accounted for in straight price comparisons.
It's immature to call people you don't know immature. You're making a lot of assumptions about who it is that dislikes where the Walmarts of the world are taking us. Having kids actually makes the argument more poignant.
There are plenty of AT&T stores, and I don't think Apple is having any trouble with people knowing iPhone exists.
Exactly. The argument here, however, is the mechanism of that parting. Fools don't realize that they're losing more by saving a buck on corn flakes.
Made the decision, or had it made for them. Based on your argument though, people should decide on Walmart just because other people do, not because it makes any kind of sense. Besides, this competition argument kind of ignores the fact that most of these Walmarts are heavily government subsidized through tax breaks and land deals.People have made strategic decisions to create change - there are more Walmart stores as a result of their purchasing choices
I went to the Salem Walmart today do get some shopping done.
Outside, there are 5 bars of 3G. Inside, I know it's very spotty and near to no bars.
With my 1st gen, I'd never get service except for some spots at the front of the store.
So today, it was my first time with my own 3G in Walmart. Service was a bit better in parts of the store, but I still got spotty.
I went to the back of the stores to go see the 3Gs, and them too, had no service, as well as my own phone.
What a great way to show off an awesome device.
I'd suggest to them- if they move the iPhone 3G to the supermarket part of Walmart, they'd get 3 bars of 3G over there.
Outside, there are 5 bars of 3G. Inside, I know it's very spotty and near to no bars.
With my 1st gen, I'd never get service except for some spots at the front of the store.
So today, it was my first time with my own 3G in Walmart. Service was a bit better in parts of the store, but I still got spotty.
I went to the back of the stores to go see the 3Gs, and them too, had no service, as well as my own phone.
What a great way to show off an awesome device.
I'd suggest to them- if they move the iPhone 3G to the supermarket part of Walmart, they'd get 3 bars of 3G over there.